IT Management Slideshow: iPad: 7 Self-Contradictions

iPad: 7 Self-Contradictions

What we say: This may be nitpicking, but any device that can't multitask sufficiently to let you monitor Facebook or Twitter while you check email is lacking in the magic category.

Having sold 300,000 iPads on the first day of availability, Apple's reach into our cultural consciousness is getting deeper. There's a reason why: Apple's sleek design results in seductive devices that speak to our inner child. For anyone who's even the slightest bit interested in the latest technology, it's almost impossible to hold an Apple device and not want one. The iPad, from all accounts, is very much a continuation of the company's innate sense of what drives consumer desire.

But as any survey of early iPad reviews will indicate, the iPad is not all it's cracked up to be. It's a wildly hyped device that may prove to be a critical step in the evolution of computers, but it's too limited to have a profound impact on how work gets done, which is clearly what IT executives are most interested in.

In fact, it doesn't take much to poke holes in the iPad. All one has to do is read Apple's original press release on the device from Jan. 27. The language is, well, let's just say it's a bit out of touch with reality. What kind of self-contradictions are there? Let us inform you.